ACR upgrades PLB offerings

January 28, 2010

ByIan J. Twombly

ACR Electronics put its foot into the subscription-based personal locator beacon market by acquiring SafeLife Systems, the manufacturer said recently.

By buying SafeLife, ACR is now able to offer beacon testing and non-critical text messaging and e-mail with its devices. ACR PLB owners can register and pay for the annual service online. Basic service that allows for beacon testing is $39.99, and premium service that will send “I’m OK” messages on demand to user-designated contacts is $59.99.

The move puts ACR in direct competition with Spot Satellite Messenger, which offers a device similar to ACR’s PLBs, but without the 406 MHz and 121.5 MHz tracking.

ACR also introduced a new PLB called the SARLink View. The SARLink View is a PLB with 406 MHz, 121.5 MHz, and GPS capability, but the added benefit of a digital readout. The display can tell a user if the GPS and beacon are working, the current GPS coordinates, and how much battery life is left.